This week’s project was a special request from my daughter, who asked me to make a porch welcome sign for her front door. As a passionate dog lover and owner of four very excitable pups, she wanted something that reflected her furry family. I decided to create a custom porch sign with a silhouette for each of her dog breeds, using my Cricut vinyl cutting machine.

Aside from being decorative, this personalised welcome sign may also work as a deterrent for would-be thieves, though in reality, these dogs are far more likely to lick visitors to death than scare them away!

This project also ties perfectly into the ‘Do It Over’ Designers Blog Hop, where a group of talented bloggers share their latest recycled, upcycled, or DIY creations. You’ll find links to their inspiring projects at the end of this post.

DIY Porch Welcome Sign with Dog Silhouettes – Perfect for Pet Lovers

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Materials Needed

• Wooden board or upcycled wooden surface (I used an old cheese board from a charity shop)
• Sandpaper
• Clear polyurethane sealer
• Cricut or Silhouette vinyl cutting machine (I used a Cricut Explore Air 2)
• SVG dog silhouette images (purchased from Etsy)
• Outdoor permanent vinyl (I recommend Oracle 651)
• Transfer film
• Brayer or scraper tool
• Weeding tools or a craft knife
• Bow or embellishments (mine was made from a recycled belt)
• Strong craft glue

Preparing the Wooden Board

I found my board at a charity shop for just $3. It had a few surface marks, so I sanded it until smooth. I prefer sealing my wood surfaces with clear polyurethane before applying vinyl—this helps the vinyl last longer outdoors and prevents lifting. Any smooth wooden surface will work, so don’t be afraid to upcycle an old cutting board, plank, or scrap timber.

Choosing the Dog Silhouettes

For this project, I purchased a dog breed SVG bundle from Etsy, which included 100 silhouette images for under $10. Silhouettes work best for porch signs because they’re bold and easy to see from a distance. If you’re tech-savvy, you can create your own silhouettes from photos.
Tip: Always ensure the files you purchase are in SVG format to ensure they work correctly with your cutting machine.

Designing in Cricut Design Space

Design Space is the software that comes with the Cricut machine. It is very simple to use once you get the hang of it. 

Open Cricut Design Space and start a new project.

Next, select upload and find the images you are using in your design and add them to the design space.

Move your images around until you are satisfied with the layout.

Select a text box and enter your wording. You can choose your preferred font from the options at the top of the page. If you’re using a script font, make sure to select all the text and weld it together. Without welding, the Cricut will cut each letter individually instead of as one continuous word. You’ll find the weld button on the right-hand side of the screen under the “Combine” tab.

Select the text and group it by clicking the group button on the right-hand side. If you don’t group your text, the Cricut will rearrange it to save vinyl. For example, the text “No need to knock” in my design was grouped, while the other text was not. The same thing happens with images—the machine will move them around to fill the vinyl space. While this does save material, I find it makes the project take twice as long to complete.

Once you’re satisfied with the layout, click “Select All” at the top of the screen, then choose “Attach” in the bottom right-hand corner. This locks your design in the exact arrangement you see on the screen. I forgot to do this with the dog silhouettes, but they were easy enough to realign—text, however, would have been a nightmare to fix. When everything is ready, click the “Make It” button at the top of the screen.

Cutting the vinyl

For all outdoor projects, I use Oracle 651 vinyl, as it’s a durable, permanent outdoor vinyl. Place the vinyl onto the Cricut mat with the vinyl side facing up. Set the machine’s dial to the “Vinyl” setting, load the mat, and press the ‘C’ button to begin cutting.

When the machine finishes cutting, press the arrow button to release the mat. The next step is to weed the vinyl, which means removing all the excess vinyl so only your design remains. Using Cricut weeding tools or a craft knife, carefully take out the unwanted vinyl, including the pieces inside the letters.

Transferring the image

To transfer the image, cut a piece of transfer film large enough to cover your entire design. Place the transfer film over the vinyl and smooth it down firmly using a Brayer or scraper to ensure it adheres evenly.

Peel away the backing from the transfer film—your design should now be adhered to it. Position the design where you want it on the wooden board, then firmly rub it down with a scraper to ensure it sticks. Slowly peel back the transfer film, leaving the vinyl design in place. For a design this large, it’s easier to apply it in two sections. To finish my porch welcome sign, I made a bow from a recycled belt and glued it to the top of the board.

More Cricut project ideas

This novelty doormat was made with Cricut vinyl and rubber spray.

I made this pet memorial plaque for my daughter-in-law, who lost her beloved pet.  There are so many ways you can use your Cricut besides making signs and adding names to bottles. You can find my creations here.

Do over designers’ blog hop

As I mentioned, this is the ‘Do It Over’ Designers Blog Hop, and there are some amazing projects!  Be sure to click on the links below for inspiration.

The Apple Street Cottage

Birdz of a Feather

Exquisitely Unremarkable

Little Vintage Cottage

Purple Hues & Me

Southern Sunflowers

Sum of Their Stories

Tea and Forget-Me-Nots

Unique Creations By Anita

If you’re interested in any of the items used in this project, we’d appreciate it if you used our affiliate links. Clicking these links earns us a small commission at no extra cost to you, helping us create more inspiring and exciting projects to share. We’d also love to hear your thoughts—feel free to leave a comment or share this post!